About C.T. Luna – Editor

Editor Bio

Cynthia T. Luna has been editing and reviewing people’s writing for more than 10 years. She has helped several new and seasoned writers structure their books to be better calling cards for their businesses and advised indie authors on ways to develop their stories. This year, she will be a participating editor for the #Shore Indie Contest for indie authors. (Follow this Twitter handle, @ShoreIndieto learn more.)

In fiction, Cynthia most recently completed edits for a couple of young adult romance novels. In non-fiction, she rounded the corners of an upcoming book for indie authors on writing better villains. C.T. Luna wrote and self-published The Aspiring Author’s Guide: Write Your Marketing Strategy (2016) geared towards indie authors. She contributes semi-regularly to her blog, LivinginCyn.com.

Cynthia earned an M.Sc. in Public Relations (with distinction) from Boston University College of Communication and holds a B.A. in French Language & Literature (summa cum laude) from University of Maryland, College Park. Born in Trinidad, she grew up in Washington, D.C., and today lives in Winterthur, Switzerland. In her free time, Cynthia loves to read, binge watch Netflix series (who doesn’t, really?), eat delicious foods, take long walks in nature with her husband and travel. Email her at cynthia [at] livingincyn.com. She tweets at @CynthiaTLuna.

A little bit on my background as editor

Cynthia has been in PR and marketing for more than ten years of her adult life, but she has been a communicator at heart for as long as she can remember. As such, she has always had a pen and journal at the ready, taking note of witticisms, drafting opening chapters, scribbling poetic verses, recording snappy song lyrics–while also documenting more important verbiage (as market intelligence, influencer opinion and quotes that can’t be retracted).

Unlike many editors/writers who became such by working in a publishing house, she backed into the work by ghostwriting news articles and opinion pieces, writing her own book and developing word-of-mouth through her marketing counsel and social media.

Over the last few years, she has provided freelance writing, editing and marketing counsel to small businesses wanting to raise their profile as well as to aspiring and already-published authors who want to polish and promote their stories.

Here’s what some of Cynthia’s clients had to say…

When Cynthia edited two of my YA manuscripts recently, I expected only feedback on a proofreading level, but she went above and beyond in providing suggestions for greatly improving both stories. Not only did she catch typos and grammar mistakes, she helped me with better word choice (and catching overused words!), pointing out missing but necessary scenes, and really diving into the characters’ heads and motivations. Cynthia gave me critical feedback for how to grow as a storyteller, but perhaps just as importantly, she told me what worked in both stories as well. She definitely knows what she’s doing!

As a book-writing virgin, I had no idea what to expect, much less ask, from an editor. I was very fortunate to have had Cynthia offer to review my copy precisely when I needed experienced guidance.

Her edits were next-level thoughtful and appropriately directive. Maybe it’s her marketing communications background, but it was clear that she kept my reading audience in mind while reviewing my drafts. Is the timing of my words aligned with the needs of my readers? Am I moving the reader through information too quickly or too slowly? Do I need to breath more space into the pages?

Perhaps, more importantly to me, I feel Cynthia really appreciated my work and words. Her feedback was constructive and positive, and she was committed to helping me stay true to my voice. She worked with me to help me craft a final product that I feel proud to share.

Cynthia is extremely attentive and astute. She picks up on both the nuances of language and how that impacts flow and style, as well as being able to look at the bigger picture of the overall book and how your chapters fit together. She pays great attention to detail, picking up on crutch words and phrases.

I think one of Cynthia’s biggest skills is her background in marketing. This is for two reasons. The first, is that she knows what will sell and can help you tailor your book to your audience. The second is her helpful thoughts and contributions on how you can iterate and optimise your book into other products in order to sell more books.

Manuscript Wishlist

Young Adult, New Adult, and Adult fiction with female characters who are going through a marked change or transformation. (I am not looking for erotic stories at this time.)

Action/Adventure, Upmarket commercial, Espionage, Humor, LGBTQ, Literary, Magic realism, Romance, Women’s Fiction (especially from marginalized voices). A special note about magic realism: if your story has a voodoo priestess or a downtrodden psychic, this is fine;if it has talking dragons, shapeshifters and vampires, it’s probably not my bag.

Whether your project is adult, YA or NA, I hold the same criteria in reviewing your work. I enjoy a defined voice, good pacing, and compelling characters who grow–maybe even transform.

I strongly believe we need diverse books and am looking for an authentic representation of all characters. But I do have a soft spot for books with minority MCs.

C.T. Luna is a ShoreIndie Editor!

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